Gwangyang-si Population Vitality Promotion Committee Meeting Held
Gwangyang City in Jeollanam-do announced that on January 31, it held the ‘Population Vitality Promotion Committee’ at the city hall situation room to respond to changes in population structure and population decline, aiming for sustainable development of Gwangyang City.
At the meeting, Mayor Jeong In-hwa of Gwangyang (Chairman) and eight committee members along with 34 department heads attended to review and approve the ‘2024 Gwangyang City Population Policy Implementation Plan.’
In addition, a heated discussion took place with explanations and Q&A from department heads in charge of key tasks regarding Gwangyang’s population policy, addressing the major social issues of population structure changes and population decline.
The ‘2024 Population Policy Implementation Plan’ is designed with the vision of “A sustainable city of Gwangyang where all generations are happy together,” consisting of 151 projects under five major tasks to respond to population structure changes such as youth outflow, low birthrate, and aging, and to contribute to revitalizing Gwangyang’s population (inflow and retention).
The five major tasks are ▲ Expanding comfortable living infrastructure (51 projects) ▲ Creating a child-rearing friendly environment (30 projects) ▲ Supporting economic independence of youth (41 projects) ▲ Establishing a vibrant environment for elderly life (19 projects) ▲ Building public-private governance to respond to population changes (10 projects).
Especially this year, new initiatives include ▲ Attracting and operating the ‘Moonlight Children’s Hospital’ to provide outpatient care for mild pediatric patients during late-night hours on weekdays and holidays (Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays) ▲ Providing ‘Paternity Leave Incentives’ (300,000 KRW per month, up to 3 months) for male workers on parental leave ▲ Launching the ‘Youth Suit Rental Project’ to alleviate economic burdens on youth and support new challenges such as job seeking.
Furthermore, opinions were gathered regarding the full revision of the ordinance supporting Gwangyang City’s population increase policies.
Mayor Jeong In-hwa stated, “Although Gwangyang’s population has increased for two consecutive years, we cannot be complacent. The country is facing an exponential population decline, leading to local and rural extinction issues. Gwangyang is making desperate efforts to proactively address these challenges.”
He added, “By establishing a Gwangyang-style customized welfare platform tailored to life cycles, we will implement meticulous welfare policies with the goal of ‘increasing births, reducing population outflow, and increasing population inflow,’ and make every effort to tackle population issues.”
Going forward, Gwangyang City plans to hold the Population Vitality Promotion Committee again in July 2024 to review the progress of the population policy implementation plan, and in December, it will evaluate the departments responsible for population policy and provide incentives to outstanding departments.
Following a population increase of 498 people last year, Gwangyang City maintained its growth trend with an additional 187 people in January 2024, reaching a total population of 152,853.
Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters, Reporter Heo Seon-sik hss79@asiae.co.kr
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